Idealism is what precedes experience; cynicism is what follows

Mozilla tames Firefox tab monster with Candy

Mozilla is testing a new Firefox interface designed to tame that seemingly endless string of tabs stretching across the top of your browser – and beyond.

Why (smart) practice makes perfect

Previous studies have shown that variable practice improves the brain's memory of most skills better than practice focused on a single task. Cognitive neuroscientists at USC and UCLA describe the neural basis for this paradox in a new study

New poll shows 70% of people want cannabis legalised

A new poll just commissioned by Lib Dems for Drug Policy Reform and conducted by Vision Critical shows that 70% of people are in favour of cannabis being legalised.

Mega new climate science: 'Runaway' effect exaggerated

Top international boffins, having crunched vast amounts of climate data, say that the effect of "carbon feedback" - thought likely in some quarters to cause imminent runaway global warming followed by the end of human civilisation - has been exaggerated.

Savitex: Cannabis mouth spray for MS that relieves pain gets go-ahead

The first cannabis-based medicine has been given the go-ahead for use in Britain by MS sufferers. Sativex, a mouth spray, relieves painful spasticity of the muscles which can make it hard to unscrew the lid from a bottle or get in and out of a car.

Google's gatekeeper to collect toll for dying news orgs

Google is planning to introduce a billing and payment system for news content producers by the end of the year, according to a report in Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

Suspended-animation cold sleep achieved in lab

Top boffins in the States believe that they may be on the track of a way to place living human beings into suspended animation, allowing them to survive long periods effectively frozen before being "reanimated" with no ill effects.

Hewlett-Packard Wants to Print for Smartphones

Mr. Joshi has spent years disputing the notion that people will print less as they do more on their hand-held devices. This week, he will see his ideas put into action as H.P. introduces a fleet of printers with Web access, their own e-mail addresses and touch screens.

'The Help' Gets Its Due: New York Passes Domestic Workers 'Bill of Rights'

New law brings protections most Americans enjoy to historically oppressed, invisible industry

You Couldn't Make This Up Dept: The Mystery of Mars' Moon Phobos Deepens

The origin of Mars' tiny moon, Phobos (fear in ancient Greek), is a mystery, but three theories are considered plausible.

Fowl is fair! Key Food's chicken relabeling is completely kosher

A Brooklyn Heights Key Food that has been repeatedly accused of changing the "sell-by" date on meat is off the hook this week after the state revealed that the relabeling practice is completely legal.

Marijuana Legalization: California Tax and Regulate Has Eight-Point Lead in Latest Poll, But Still Under 50%

According to a Los Angeles Times/USC poll released Tuesday, the California Tax and Regulate Cannabis initiative has the support of 49% of voters, while 41% are opposed, and 10% are undecided. The figures are in line with other recent polls.

Insulin giant pulls medicine from Greece over price cut

The world's leading supplier of the anti-diabetes drug insulin is withdrawing a state-of-the-art medication from Greece. Novo Nordisk, a Danish company, objects to a government decree ordering a 25% price cut in all medicines.

Want nips like church coat pegs?

Here's something practical for those women who want to make a point or two, but aren't up-front enough to do it naturally - the eye-catching Body Perks Nipple Enhancers:

Approaching space object 'artificial, not asteroid' says NASA

The mysterious artificial object has apparently made a close pass by the Earth, coming in almost to the distance of the Moon's orbit, and is now headed away again into the interplanetary void. The object has used no propulsion during the time NASA has had it under observation.

No Fair! Kids and Adults View Fairness Differently

What we consider "fair" changes as we age, a new study finds. Young children like all things to be equal, but older adolescents are more likely to consider merit when it comes to dividing up wealth, the researchers say.

Seized marijuana legalization petitions missing

The campaign director for Washington state's marijuana legalization effort is unable to account for eight petitions allegedly seized from a medical marijuana dispensary by a drug task force during a raid two weeks ago.

Latest Research On Pot and Schizophrenia Runs Contrary to Mainstream Media Hype

The mainstream media loves to spill ink hyping the allegation that marijuana causes mental illness, particularly schizophrenia. In fact, it was in March when international media outlets declared that cannabis use 'doubled' one's risk of developing the disease.

Tea Party rage is just the beginning

"Historians will tell you," writes the historian Simon Schama in the Financial Times, "there is often a time-lag between the onset of economic disaster and the accumulation of social fury."

Is Dora the Explorer an illegal immigrant?

In her police mug shot, the doe-eyed cartoon heroine with the bowl haircut has a black eye, battered lip and bloody nose. Dora the Explorer's alleged crime? "Illegal Border Crossing Resisting Arrest."

Uproar over M&G Prophet Muhammad cartoon

It was a late night in court for the Mail & Guardian as the Council of Muslim Theologians on Thursday evening tried to stop the newspaper from publishing a Zapiro cartoon featuring the Prophet Muhammad.

'Dossiers on enemies' found in Italian Scientology raid

Italian police reportedly unearthed hidden dossiers on 'enemies' during a raid on Church of Scientology offices in Turin.

Nigeria: A debate on pedophilia, Sharia law, and the 'two' Nigerias

The headline is tabloid-esque: Nigerian senator marries 13-year-old girl. Like so much of the recent news from Nigeria, it seems more worthy of a Nollywood script than the political landscape of Africa's most populous country.

The evolution of addiction and the fetishisation of smoking

Not-entirely-unsurprising news from the world of evolutionary psychiatry: human use of psychoactive compounds found in plants and animals is thousands of years old, and evolutionary selection may actually have favoured those of our ancestors who were wired to get a kick from cert …

Marijuana May Extend Life Expectancy Of Lou Gehrig's Disease Patients, Study Says

Cannabis therapy may reduce symptoms and prolong survival in patients diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS aka Lou Gehrig's ), according to a scientific review published online last week by the American Journal of Hospice & Palliative Medicine.

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Ageing Hippie

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A child of the sixties, born in 1947, I've served in the Royal Air Force, taught in Africa, bummed around Europe, and done a lot of things I shouldn't …